10 Career Mistakes Non-Physician Providers Make – 6/27/2013

HEALTHeCAREERS.com has gathered the top 10 career mistakes non-physician providers make based on studies and experience. Non-physician providers who avoid these mistakes increase their chances of finding good jobs, and increase the possibility of job satisfaction.

10. Accepting a job with a personality mis-match

First, experts believe the most important issue in considering nurse practitioners or physician assistants for employment is whether the personality and style of the applicant fits with the practice and the physician, according to AMedNews. This implies, on the flipside, that NPs and PAs make a grave mistake that may lead to termination if they go "against their guts" to select a job that presents clear personality clash potential with the lead physician.

9. Communication break-down with the supervising physician

According to an article in the American Journal of Gastroenterology, as the work stress on physicians intensifies, the number of responsibilities delegated to nurse practitioners and physician assistants increases. This also spreads physician liability over all the NPs and PAs in their practices. The legal system penalizes doctors for any possible oversights, big and small, made by non-physician counterparts. Physicians know this, so if there is any doubt on a decision, make sure to communicate critical information with the physician. Team collaboration is essential. When health care professionals are not communicating effectively, patient safety is at risk, and the goal is to avoid situations where medical errors can occur.

8. Failing to understand legal limits of practice

This is especially applicable to nurse practitioners or physician assistants moving from one state to another. Do not simply assume rights and responsibilities transfer: NPs can write prescriptions in all 50 states, but prescribe controlled substances in only 47, for example.

7. Failing to ensure strict, objective delineation of duties within the practice

Beyond legal restrictions, different practices will expect different things, and just because an NP had a set of her own patients at a previous practice doesn't mean she won't end up sharing patients with the physician at her newest employment. Don't just accept a job based on personality and finances: also make sure to ask questions about the specific duties expected.

This also applies to issues of conscience. Some non-physician providers, especially in the areas of obstetrics and gynecology, will find themselves expected to perform different services at their new practices--services for which they received religious exemptions from previous employers (e.g., Catholic providers, contraceptives prescriptions). While these topics may be uncomfortable at an interview, it's possible to phrase inquiries in a nonjudgmental manner, or better, to quietly investigate the practice online--and it's much better to know ahead of time how to mitigate potential conscience conflicts.

6. Not knowing when to leave

Staying for years at a practice that offers no advancement opportunities can cause a non-physician provider to stagnate skill-wise and limit job satisfaction; remaining at a practice that's just undergone management changes for the worse can threaten job security. While it's frightening to leave a secure job, it's important for providers to see warning signs that indicate they aren't going to be able to work with a physician without making a legal error or encountering severe personality clashes. It's better to leave ahead of time, on good terms, than to stay until office politics and bad communication lead to a severe error in patient care.

5. Leaving in a huff

On the other hand, burning bridges in anger will make it impossible for a nurse practitioner or physician assistant to get good recommendations for future employment. Patch up disagreements with apologies and kindness, if possible, or wait for a more pleasant month to announce resignation.

4. Not taking advancement opportunities

While the job might work well now, it's important for physician assistants and nurse practitioners to look to the future. Medicine continues to change, so change with it, and find ways to advance the individual career and the practice as a whole. Set goals for improvement, and don't just do the required continuing education credits--go above and beyond, or watch raises and job opportunities go to someone who did.

3. Becoming mercenary in advancement

On the other hand, a nurse practitioner or physician assistant clearly interested only in advancing his or her own career will alienate both co-workers and patients. Patients can sense when they're only another visit number, and overly-competitive co-workers may disagree about diagnoses or blame mistakes on others, even unintentionally. Build trust among the members of the healthcare team by sharing responsibility for success.

2. Failing to apologize

Recent studies regarding physician malpractice have found that the most common cause for malpractice suits isn't actually error directly, but the failure to communicate with the patient--and to apologize for genuine mistakes. The same goes for NPs and PAs. Listen to patients, and take special care to apologize to them for errors. The apology may have to take the form of "I'm sorry _____ happened" rather than "I'm sorry we did ____ wrong," to avoid confessing something that can be used against the practice in court, but it's important to apologize nonetheless.

1. Forgetting what healthcare is all about

The biggest career mistake a non-physician provider can make? Thinking the job's about the dollars, the position, the intellectual stimulation, or the excitement. All of these things combine to make a physician assistant or nurse practitioner job better, but healthcare is about caring for a patient's health. As soon as any kind of provider forgets that, physician or otherwise, he or she may open up to cold impatience--and the possibility of thinking of clients as numbers and charts, the possibility of ignoring or communicating poorly with a patient, and ultimately the possibility of malpractice. Even if the worst doesn't happen, losing your patience is losing your patients: no one likes a cold provider, and no one wants to promote one, either. People need compassion, and forgetting that is the biggest mistake a healthcare provider can make.